


No more waiting

by AweburnPhoenix



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Blind Date, F/M, First Kiss, Jealous Dana Scully, Jealous Fox Mulder, Scheming, date, pre-Millenium kiss
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-16
Updated: 2019-02-16
Packaged: 2019-10-29 13:15:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,814
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17808635
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AweburnPhoenix/pseuds/AweburnPhoenix
Summary: Everybody seems tired of waiting for Mulder or Scully to make a move forward... So Maggie and Skinner decide to give them a little push.





	No more waiting

**Author's Note:**

  * For [suilven](https://archiveofourown.org/users/suilven/gifts).



> Andrea «suilven» this is for you!! I hope you enjoy it :D I had a great time writing it, thanks for the Prompt:
> 
> »»Skinner and Scully's mom working together to set up Mulder and Scully, maybe sending Mulder and Scully each a message supposedly from the other person. Jealous Mulder or Jealous Scully. Anything with tons of UST/RST.««
> 
> So, I tried to follow the prompt as close as I could, and had Maggie and Skinner secretly setting out favourite duo up. I've gone slightly AU (oh, my! :P) and I think my Skinner is a bit OOC, because I hadn't written him before… but, anyhow, I hope you enjoy our awkward duo being weird and not talking about the stuff they should hahaha
> 
> Happy Valentine's everybody <3

 

 

Saturday afternoon at Scully's apartment had started with her mother's visit. She had been feeling ill during the week and Maggie wouldn't miss the chance to take care of her little baby. Though she was a grown up FBI woman, hermother still thought she needed to be brought soup on a Saturday afternoon.

Scully wouldn't admit it, but she was loving the extra care. She didn't get many occasions to spend quality time with her mother lately. Since she had started working at the FBI they saw less of each other, especially in the later years. In one way or another she found herself gravitating toward Mulder more and more during her leisure time.

Maybe it was the relaxed moment, or the illness clouding her judgement, but Scully found herself opening to her mother more than she had intended to.

"Maybe it's worth a try, Dana."

"No, Mom. We've talked about this before. It's not like this."

"I'm just saying, he really cares about you. And he is so handsome, don't you think?"

"Of course he's really handsome, Mom, but it cannot happen. End of conversation."

Scully got up from the couch carrying her tea mug back to the kitchen. She wasn't finished but she needed to escape her mother's third degree. Some years back she could have stood up to that conversation. But after her cancer, after what her mother had seen in Mulder, what she herself had seen in Mulder… it was more and more difficult to stand her ground. Mulder's feelings for her were so obvious. And as much as she wanted to deny it, her own feelings were pouring too much lately. And her mother had seen them. Scully couldn't escape her prying eyes. It had been a really bad idea to start talking about work. With Maggie, it always turned to her and Mulder having to be together. Why couldn't she let it go? She didn't want to give in to what everybody at the Bureau already thought. And, as much as she _loved_ Mulder… she knew that relationship was hopelessly doomed. Why couldn't her mother see that?

"You don't have to hide from me here," her mother's voice startled her in the kitchen.

Scully found herself grabbing the dish towel tightly. How long had she been lost in her thoughts?

"I wasn't hiding, I…" she left her sentence unfinished and sighed when she saw her mother rising her eyebrow. Ugh, she was being given a taste of her own medicine, and she hated that.

"I won't push again. I'm sure you'll do it at your own pace," Maggie declared and left her thinking about her words while she went to the sink with the two used mugs and started washing them.

The doorbell rang at that exact same moment, as if it was waiting for their little argument to settle. Scully wasn't expecting any visit so she rushed to the door to see who it could be.

"Hey, can I come in?" Mulder barged in without waiting for her to reply and started talking on his way to the couch while Scully closed the door and followed him closely. "Remember that demon-woman we lost a couple weeks back? I think I found her. I've gotten reports of a newborn with some deformities. Bone growth in his forefrontand scapula and all that." He spoke so fast and left a folder in the coffee table. "Oh, by the way, how's your cold? Are you feeling better?" He finally lifted his gaze and saw her approaching. "Sorry, you were probably resting, right?" He said, rubbing his forehead as he saw her wearing her pajamas under a cozy robe.

"Hello, Fox. Nice to see you." Maggie suddenly made her appearance from the kitchen and both Mulder and Scully seemed surprised to see her. Had her daughter completely forgotten her presence when Mulder showed up at her door?

"Uh, ah, Mrs. Scully… I didn't know you were here. Sorry to interrupt…" Mulder jumped up from the sofa, grabbing the folder he had brought.

"It's ok, we were kind of boring each other anyway. So settle yourself. I'll finish with the kitchen while you two talk." Maggie went back but in fact sat down on the kitchen table and stared lovingly at the two of them. It was rare that she got to see them in their element, and she wanted to observe them from afar, as it seemed that they had just completely forgotten about her presence again the moment she retreated.

She couldn't hear much; they managed to keep their voice down. Dana never told her about her job, she said it was dangerous enough and it would scare her, but she reassured her mother that she took all the precautions to always be safe. So Maggie tried not to worry too much about it. Even though she couldn't hear what they were talking about, she was just amazed at their interaction. Dana seemed to have sprung to life the moment Fox entered her apartment. She had had that sick face the whole afternoon but it had completely faded now. She seemed not toointerested in whatever Fox was telling her about, but nonetheless she listened to him with her whole mind. Maggie could see the glances, the touches, even the silences they shared. What else would it take for them to be together?

She was then startled by the knocking on the door. She waited for her daughter to answer it but, seeing she was completely focused on her conversation, she decided to open herself when whoever was at the other side knocked again.

"Hi, uhm, Mrs. Scully. Is Dana home?" She surprised her daughter's boss at the entrance.

"She's engrossed in some kind of secret meeting," she replied smiling as she let him in, pointing at the whispering two on the couch.

"Why doesn't this surprise me?" Skinner mumbled. "I've been, in fact, looking for _the guy_. Somehow I knew I'd find him here." Skinner rubbed his bald forehead in exasperation. He couldn't quite grasp the relationship the two of them had. The whole personnel at the Bureau were sure they were banging each other, but Walter knew better. He had been observing them for a while and he knew this couldn't be. At this point, it wasn't any of his business, as he was not his superior anymore, so it really frustrated him. It was clear for him that they wouldn't date anybody else, but somehow they couldn't manage to get together. It also saddened him. They had been through so much, they deserved some happiness. He could see they had it within their reach, but somehow they couldn't see it.

Maggie and Walter stood still watching the two younger ones at the couch as if they were mesmerized. Somehow they were. Their interaction was so pure they couldn't keep their eyes from them.

"Sir, may I ask you something?" Maggie suddenly uttered.

"Of course, ma'am."

"Is there any… rule preventing agents from dating a partner?" Maggie murmured her question, as if she was afraid of saying too much.

Walter knew exactly where the question came from, and realised they were both thinking about the same nonsense.

"Not exactly, it's not encouraged but neither prohibited. There are just some rules to be followed… And I guess Mulder doesn't do well with rules." He sighed loudly. "I think these two can't seem to get their shit together," he finally grunted. "Sorry," he immediately realized how rude he had sounded. He was talking to Dana's mother, after all.

"Don't be. I'm quite frustrated myself about these two, too,. She sighed and invited him to the kitchen. She started wondering how long they could be talking about them behind their backs without the two in the living room realizing they were being watched. For Special FBI agents they were quite spaced-out.

Maggie didn't really know how, but she found herself persuading her daughter's boss to help her get Dana and her partner on a date. It wasn't really difficult; apparently Walter Skinner had the same interest as her to get those two together. Walter seemed like a nice man, Maggie realized. She had seen a little of him during her daughter's illness, and he was always really concerned and protective of Dana.

They would set a little scheme, each of them working on one side of the problem. They were about to set Dana and Fox together in a nice restaurant the following Friday evening.

 

—————

 

 _Parking lot 7.00 pm, come alone_ , said the handwritten note that Mulder found hidden among his dozen folders scattered on his bullpen desk on Monday morning.

"Hey, Scully, I think I have a secret assignment." He turned around to face his partner and threw the note at her.

They had been doing profile checks and stupid calls for weeks, so Mulder would get excited with anything out of the ordinary. He really wondered who it would be this time. It didn't look like Diana's writing and he even doubted she would want to contact him. They hadn't been on the best of terms lately. This had to be about a case. He needed it to be about a case.

"Hope you have a bag ready to go," he suggestively raised his eyebrows at Scully. Thinking about leaving the boring office and embarking on a case away with her was the best news he could ever get.

"It says for you to come alone," Scully hovered over her desk to hand him back the piece of paper, and he thought he saw a hint of disappointment in her eyes. She could deny it as much as she wanted, but he knew deep down she liked the thrill of the case, his crazy theories, and being constantly challenged. He had told her he needed to be reigned in. For fucks sake, he had told her he _loved_ her. What else did she need?

"I wouldn't go anywhere without you." He winked at her, trying to release some tension from his sentence. But he really meant each and every word he said.

 

At 6 pm his chair was already burning and he couldn't stay still. Scully was on her way home and Mulder didn't know what he was going to do in the next hour. Ever since the X-Files had been taken away from them, he spent less and less time at work. It wasn't as interesting.

He saw Scully grabbing her coat and got ready to leave.

"I'll call you later and tell you about the meeting," he mouthed. There were spies everywhere, he didn't want to let his informant down.

When the time arrived, the building was almost empty and he used the stairs instead of the elevator for extra precaution. When he arrived at his car, Walter Skinner was waiting around.

"Sir, I, uhm, I thought we weren't supposed to talk to each other…" Mulder started to get nervous. He didn't want to blow his meeting, he needed his former boss away as soon as possible.

"That's why I left you the note. I have a proposition for you."

 _What?_ He was his secret meeting?

"This might seem a bit awkward, but I got you a date for the weekend…"

_What?_

"Excuse me, sir?" Mulder wondered if the man was pulling his leg, had gone bonkers or maybe it was his strange sickness again…

"A friend of mine has a younger sister visiting for a couple weeks and I thought you two could benefit from some time together. She needs somebody to show her around and I'm sure it'll do you good to expand your social circle."

_What?_

Mulder was speechless. He couldn't believe his superior was hooking him on a blind date.

"Sir, I don't think… I'm quite busy right now…"

"Don't fuck with me, Mulder. I know you are as bored as can be with you current line of work. I need a favour, and you'd do well in helping _me_ this time. That'll prevent you from going rampant on whatever secret mission you might be thinking about to ruin my weekend with this time. Whatever crazy situation that I might need to get you out off next?"

Well, maybe he was right. Probably he hadn't yet forgotten the Queen Anne fiasco, his tampering with the files while Scully was on that New York case, the sneaking into that demon harvesting case in Virginia… Ok, _maybe_ he owed the big man a couple favours.

 

———

 

Scully was impatiently waiting for Mulder's call. However, she made an effort and waited when the phone finally came to life. Letting it ring four times before, she finally hit the answer button. Mulder didn't need to know she was so eager to find out aboutwhat his secret meeting had been about.

"Scully," she answered as usual, trying to sound uninterested.

"Dana, it's mom," a familiar but unexpected voice sounded on the other side of the line and Scully had to disguise her unwanted surprise.

"I'm calling to tell you that I've done something you might not like but that you'll probably end up thanking me for."

Scully weighed her mother's words. They definitely didn't bode well for her. What the hell could she have done?

"Remember Parker? The older son of my neighbor, Mr. Hardison?"

Of course she did. He was a guy around her age. They had met when they were younger, and lately she had seen him a couple of times at her mother's house. Apparently Parker had moved back to his parents' house when his mother had passed away a couple months before. Sometimes he helped Maggie with physically demanding tasks that she couldn't manage by herself.

Maggie, but mostly Bill, had suggested Dana should date him as he was a "strong decent man", his brother's words. Luckily her mother hadn't insisted after she had shown no interest whatsoever.

"I told him you'd have dinner with him next Friday," Maggie blurted.

"What!? Mom? Why would you do that?" Scully sat up quickly at her mother's words. She couldn't believe she had been so sneaky.

"Since you said you had no interest in Fox, I thought it would do you good to hang out with some new people… You've been so consumed by work lately, sweetie, I wouldn't want you to miss on your youthful years…"

"Mom, you can't do that!" Scully was unbelievably pissed. Maybe, just maybe, in another situation, some other moment in her life, she might have agreed to have a date with the guy… But she wouldn't be forced to do so.

"It's just dinner, you'll have a great time. He's a really nice guy, and he is so funny, you'll love him."

"No, Mom, this is despicable…"

"Just think about it, ok? I'll confirm the details later this week, bye sweetie."

"No, no, no. Mom… Mom?" Scully couldn't believe it. Her mother had hang up on her. She felt like a teenager again, being told what to do… She might have expected these kind of things from her brother, but never from her mother. She'd talk to her the following day when she had calmed down. It was completely unacceptable.

 

—————

 

Tuesday morning Scully was slightly anxious when getting to work. She was still angry at her mother about the blind date, and the fact that Mulder hadn't called as he had promised after his secret meeting had her twice as worried. It was not so unexpected from him to get distracted about something and forget about her… but lately he had been doing it less and less. Somehow he had learned not to ditch her so much and let her know when he was planning to do something stupid so she could help him. Preventing him from actually doing the stupid thing was still not possible, but Scully hoped to get there sooner than later.

When she got to the office and saw him serenely sitting at his desk, talking at the phone, she got mad again. She left the coat at the hanger, her handbag at her desk and stomped towards him, leaning over his desk, crossing her arms at her chest and waited for him to finish the call. Scully was slightly offended at him for not looking at her at any moment. Was he avoiding her?

As soon as he put down the receiver she called his attention.

"So?" she quickly asked, making it obvious that she was waiting for him.

"So, what?" The guy was completely befuddled and it angered her even more.

"The meeting, Mulder! You said you'd call!?"

What was she doing? Was she really angry at him for not calling her off-hours when she usually was mad when he did? 

"Oh, uhm, it was nothing," he just said and picked up the phone again, eager to make his next call.

And then Scully knew something was not right. When was Mulder interested in background checks? Not ever, and definitely not lately. She grabbed the receiver from him and put it down again.

"Don't lie to me, that doesn't end well, and you know it," her tone had gone somber and she looked at him intensely.

"It just wasn't a case meeting, nothing important." He went over his phone list again, and it pissed her off. He was hiding something, and she wouldn't move until she found out.

"But you are going to tell me anyway, right?" She was determined.

Mulder fiddled with his pen for a moment before looking up at her. He sighed, leaning back on his chair, realising she wouldn't let it be.

"Walter Skinner invited me on a date on Friday," he finally said shrugging and rising his eyebrows.

"C'mon, Mulder, I'm not joking"

"Neither am I!" he complained, crossing his arms. "It was the weirdest talk I've had with the man. He said something about a friend of his and me owing him a favour."

"Well, that makes sense, he's been going a lot of extra miles for you lately…" Scully thought Mulder had been getting in trouble more than usual since they were out of the X-Files. Somehow she had even imagined if they were ever going to reinstate them, it would be so that Mulder stopped getting into trouble. Skinner had heard more from them during these past months than in all the years before.

"But a date? Won't that be a punishment for the unfortunate lady?" he joked, and Scully thought about all the times they had been together on what could have been dates but weren't, and a small pang of jealousy stung in her stomach. No, she would really be quite a fortunate lady to get to spend any amount of time with charming, handsome Fox Mulder.

"I guess you can behave like a gentleman for one night, don't you?" She tried to not let her jealousy show while she walked to her desk slightly defeated. That was the last thing she needed.

"I do it all the time for you, m'lady," was his sort of mumbled answer, which Scully wouldn't dare to reply to. She wasn't going to enter his game now. She couldn't. It was enough knowing he was going to date another woman.

She couldn't envision herself getting together with him… Well, to be honest, she could, and she did, in ways that she couldn't tell her confessor. But she knew it was beyond the realm of possibility that it would ever happen. She had been in that kind of relationship before, and she knew how it ended: always badly. She wouldn't dare lose her friendship with Mulder over that. But, on the other hand, she didn't want him to be somebody else's. She realised how fickle that was. Of course, she couldn't tell their former boss to find another date for his friend or she would be showing her cards. Why was it always so difficult for them?

Scully leaned on her desk and massaged her temples, only to notice Mulder sneaking an eye on her. She quickly composed herself, trying to ignore him and took out her list of calls for the day. She could swear she saw him smirking at her discomfort before turning around and minding his own business. This was going to be a long day.

 

——

 

Friday hadn't come fast enough. Mulder wouldn't be lying if he said it had been the most heinous week ever. He had been worried about his date the whole time. It had been so long since he had taken a woman out, and he doubted his ability to behave nicely.

In the last six years he had been mastering the Scully flattering, which was a real difficult art, to be honest, but he liked the challenge. Mulder could swear he had made great progress, Scully was little by little more open to his flirting and had even started responding to it… But this date had made her to shut off completely.

They had hardly spoken during the whole week. And he couldn't take that. He owed his boss a favour, and he would do it this one time: he'd take the woman to dinner and get her back home as soon as possible without being rude. The last thing he wanted was to make Skinner even more upset at him. But only this time. He'd say whatever needed not to get into this trouble again. There was only one woman he wanted to date. And if she wouldn't, he'd happily die alone surrounded with his VHS tapes, but he wouldn't threaten his chances ever again.

For the umpteenth time that week, he turned around and tried to make conversation with her.

"So, Scully, any thrilling plans for the weekend?" He rolled his chair and approached her desk, tapping on the folders neatly stacked up on the side. As usual, Mulder noticed some interested eyes falling onto him, but he tried to ignore them. It was one of the things he hated the most about being back at the bullpen: there was always somebody not minding their business and snooping around _Mr. and Mrs. Spooky_ ….

"Maybe," she just muttered, and Mulder focused completely on her, happy to see that they were on talking terms again.

"Nice, tell me about it! Maybe a trip to San Diego to see the nephews?" Anything to bring up the conversation.

"No, I, uhm, I have a date too," she kind of blurted without looking at him and Mulder's heart crushed in a thousand pieces.

This couldn't be happening. As far as he knew, she hadn't been dating for years… Had she felt compelled to do it because he was? What a complete mess had he fallen into?

"Surprised? You can but I can't?" She looked up finally and found his gawking face.

Mulder tried to compose himself.

"Of course not, you're free to do whatever you want… I just… I didn't know you were… dating, that's all." He shrugged and tried to be chill about it, but he started to get more nervous. The thought of Scully with another guy made him sick in the stomach. It was not like he was dating of his own will, and she knew that… Was this her payback? If it was so, it was definitely working.

"Anyhow, I gotta go now, I don't want to be late… to my date," he spoke without thinking and immediately regretted it. He could swear he saw the disappointment in her eyes, but she replied with a " _Have fun_ " that just didn't match it.

Why were they doing this he couldn't understand. Only some months ago they had been about to kiss, he had told her he loved her, then she had gifted him that brand new _Plan 9 From Outer Space_ VHS for Christmas… Why in hell were they dating other people tonight!?

"You have fun, too," he replied, already leaving without feigning any enthusiasm.

 

——

 

Scully was pacing her bedroom looking at the outfits spread on her bed. When she had, being mad at Mulder, called her mother to accept the date with Parker Hardison, she hadn't really thought about it. She didn't want to do this. Parker seemed like a nice guy, and now she would be keeping his hopes up unnecessarily… It was a mean thing for her to do, and she was angry at herself. And it was all for Mulder.

Cursing him, she grabbed the first dress and put it on. It was a nice red dress she had bought a while back and had never worn: halter square neck and an open back, slim fit only at the top. While she zipped it up, she was happy to see it still fit her perfectly well. Her hair, curled at the tips, gave her a 40s style. She chuckled. If Mulder could see her he'd rumble again about his trip to the Queen Anne and her double in there… Parker! Dana, focus!! You are dressing for Parker. She shook off any Mulder thoughts and placed the second dress in front of her, still on its hanger. It was a much sexier one, dark blue pencil dress with a slit, v—neckline… No, that spectacular dress wasn't for just any guy. She had been a little hasty buying it, and she didn't even try it on. Walking back to the closet, she hung it in the back, where it had been waiting for a couple months.

She hustled to put her shoes on, grabbed a coat and her purse and was quickly out the door. It had taken her a while to get dressed. She still had to get to the other side of the river. Her mother had given her the address of a French restaurant in Arlington, telling her she'd meet the guy there. She was happy to not be picked up at home; she had no interest whatsoever in having him bring her back home and have an awkwardfarewell. As soon as the meal was over, she'd excuse herself claiming having to work on Saturday and she'd call a cab. Sooner rather than later she'd be home again, this awful experience over. _Calm down, Dana, what if, maybe, just maybe, you try to have a good time?_ She could almost hear her mother's voice in her head. Tightly holding the doorknob she made an effort to relax. It was jut a casual date, just dinner, she knew the guy, he was a nice man….

 

———

 

Mulder was a nervous wreck. Waiting for Skinner's call to confirm the reservation, he was pacing his living room. He'd already fed the fish, twice, and he couldn't believe he was thinking about changing his outfit, like a teenage girl preparing for prom night. He didn't care at all what his date thought about his suit, but he didn't want to be too presumptuous. Skinner had told him to dress nicely since he was making a reservation at a good restaurant. But maybe this was too much… He finally decided on taking off his tie and changing into his leather jacket. He didn't need to look too uptight or interested. It was definitely not that kind of date.

Soon his phone was ringing and he rushed to pick it up. Maybe he was lucky and the lady had cancelled…

"Mulder, it's Walter Skinner. 3100 Washington Blvd at 9pm. The reservation is under Hardison," he recited without waiting for Mulder to speak. Hearing his sigh, Skinner continued. "Don't fuck this up, Mulder. I've taken my time to set you up, so you better make the most of the evening. You are the luckiest bastard," and then he hung up. Poor… fuck, in his disinterest he had forgotten to ask for the name of the woman. Mulder rubbed his forehead, he'd have to figure it out for himself.

He arrived at the restaurant on time, it was pretty close to his apartment. He had decided to take a cab, he could always walk back home later.

Once he got in, he stood by the door and asked for his reservation, looking over the shoulder of the lady searching the book. When she found it, Mulder could see the name Parker nicely handwritten in front of Hardison. Ok, at least he had managed to get her name. Everything was going to be alright. He tried to calm down.

"Your date is already here," the waitress told him. "First blind date?" she asked with a smirk while she guided him to the back of the restaurant.

"How did you…" Mulder started asking but the girl interrupted him.

"She seemed even more nervous than you do," the lady winked. "There, redhead by the window" she pointed out, "looking a-ma-zing. Sit and relax, I'll be with you in a minute."

The girl retreated to the door and Mulder was stuck to the floor. The woman sitting by the window, distracted by the passengers outside, looked more than amazing, she was stunning. And she was no stranger at all. Well, maybe in that outfit she was.

"I think I underdressed," he said approaching the table, "you look gorgeous, _Parker Hardison,_ " he added with a smirk.

"Mulder! What are you…?" She looked past him searching for somebody else. When he sat down in front of her she looked even more confused. "I, uhm… I'm kinda expecting someone, Mulder…"

"I'm afraid you're _just_ expecting _me_. Skinner, and I guess your mother, set us up," Mulder continued, settling in his chair. Now it all made sense. It had been a trap from the very beginning. He just wondered how and why Skinner and Mrs. Scully had come up with such a scheme. Well, he kinda guessed the why: because they had realised he was too chicken to do it himself. _Don't fuck this up, Mulder,_ he heard the man's words in his mind, and he made a promise to stick to them. He had been given a golden opportunity and he was sure to make his best of it.

 

—-

 

The worry and awkwardness that had invaded them throughout the entire week was instantly relieved when they figured out the plot they had been subjected to. After a glass of expensive wine, they were lively chatting about how they were going to pay back the prank. However, as much as they didn't want to admit it, they were having such a good time. Mulder was completely enraptured by Scully's looks, and Scully couldn't believe Mulder managed to spend a whole meal without talking about aliens, government conspiracies, or Sasquatches.

Mulder paid for the whole thing, suggesting she would have the next one, and they headed outside. It was a lovely evening, just a little bit cold.

"I can take you home if you don't mind walking to my apartment, it'll probably be fifteen minutes, tops…"

"Sounds good," Scully smiled and started walking down the street, Mulder following quickly.

None of them wanted the evening to end, and what was supposed to be a quarter of an hour quick walk, ended up being more like a half an hour wandering through the Arlington streets. Once they reached Mulder's building, Scully silently kept walking onto the entrance path.

"My car is parked around the block," Mulder raised his voice, continuing his pace down the street. He saw that Scully didn't follow but kept her steady walk towards his building's front door,. So, he turned around and rushed back to her, his heart pounding. What was she up to now? She didn't intend to spend the night, was she? They couldn't go from zero to a hundred that quickly…

Besides, his apartment was a mess, as usual —not something she didn't know already— but it was not something he wanted her to see tonight… not after the lovely evening they had had. He just wished to take her safely home, maybe kiss her good night and die happily. _Mulder, are you listening to yourself?_ he heard his inner voice calling out. _You'll do whatever she wants you to do, idiot!_ Well, yeah, he could agree with that.

He got to the front door a second before she did, and not speaking a word, he opened it, Scully looking down at her feet. Whatever they were going to do, they were not talking about it. That was completely ok with him.

Scully kept walking towards the elevator and hit the button, slightly frantically. She didn't want it to show, but she was afraid to lose her nerve, so she needed the damn cage to open, quick. The trip up the fourth floor was done in silence, both of them looking stupidly at the door. Scully's mind was a hive of activity. _Should I? Probably not. But I want to. And Skinner approves, not that I mind… I want this. This is right. Maybe just a taste of those lips…._

Suddenly the elevator dinged and she rushed outside before the doors were completely open, hurrying towards Mulder's door. What would he be thinking, what was her thinking? This was wrong, she had been fighting this for months… years even. What was she doing? She should leave, this shouldn't be happening.

Just before she got to his apartment, she stopped and turned, almost running into him, who was following close behind. As if pushed by an external force, she stood on tiptoe and finally captured his lips on hers. She just didn't think. She had been overthinking it for so long and tonight it was all about what she wanted, what her heart wanted… what other parts of her wanted. Even though she might regret it later. No! There was the thinker again, messing with her. Scully made an effort to push her rational side away. She didn't want that now. All she wanted was to enjoy the moment. _Focus, Dana!_

Hidden in the bittersweet chocolate of the _Coulant_ they had shared for dessert was that Mulder flavour she had been able to taste for a millisecond some months back. That taste she had been dying to get to know better but didn't allow herself to.

"I've been meaning to finish that for a while…" she whispered, settling back on her heels and looking down again.

The thinker struck back, and she didn't know what to do. Should she go on? Would it be too bold? Should she leave? While she stood there checking her options Mulder finally took initiative, lifting her chin and ravishing her lips with everything he had. They'd waited enough. He slightly bent his knees to adjust his height and was happily surprised at her jumping up to him, so he grabbed her with his left arm while his right hand grasped his keys inside his pocket. He walked them in, fumbling a little with the bolt and closing the door behind him with his leg. The night was only getting started.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Huuuge thanks to @AsterBerenbos and @CarlaRa85304250 in twitter for their invaluable help in beta-ing this story. You rock, girls! <3


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